Monday, January 23, 2012

Our fireplace has been burning at all hours of the day and night these past several days. Following the abundant snowfall we received last week, we received an even greater abundance of freezing rain. Many power outages followed, making the fireplace our main source of heat for a few days.

With the ice and cold, the blooming forsythia provided all the more

warmth with its bright smiling flowers.

Mike worked overtime splitting kindling and firewood.

I stepped out onto the porch to snap this picture of our frozen landscape and the trees weighed down with heavy snow and ice. The oak and aspen trees fared the worst, with many broken limbs and downed trees. The sound of the limbs snapping and crashing to the ground was sad to hear. I wished there was something we could have done for them.

The boxwood were completely coated with ice.
Many of the other plants and trees looked the same.

Indoors, our summer lanterns were helpful in the evening

and early morning hours during the outages.

The first morning light was always a welcome sight.

When the power was on, we raided the freezer for warm meals that we could make quickly. One really appreciates a hot cup of tea or a warm dinner after being without for several hours. One delicious freezer treat all four of us enjoyed (babies loved it) was this cauliflower and kale soup Mike made a while back.

The recipe is from Martha Stewart, which you can find here. Mike used twice the amount of kale that the recipe called for. It's very savory and delicious. It reminds me of cream of artichoke soup.

OMG!! Unbelievable photos. Stay safe and warm!! We are sweltering with the air con on all day its so hot 36 degrees at the moment. Australia day on thursday should be slightly cooler 31 degrees. We will have a cool glass of bubbly and think of you - no hot chocolate drinks here!!

I live in New South Wales, Australia on the coast where it NEVER snows. Your images are just so beautiful & amazing to me - though I can imagine you don't have quite the same love for it when you are in the middle of power outages. Thanks for sharing your photos and I hope you get some relief from all that snow soon!

Isn't it amazing how something so beautiful can be so awful at the same time. I'm sorry about your trees - we lost some large limbs last spring during a horrible wind storm and you hate to see them damaged like that.

Open fire, lanterns, delicious soup...you make winter seem so inviting! Reading this I was actually wishing our Summer may end sooner rather than later, so we could light our own fireplace! Stay warm and I hope the power outages are very few and far between.

Oh wow... I know what that is like to have no power and being so cold. That snow looks so deep! We don't get near that kind of snow here, in Texas, usually just ice. I do know how it feels to lose trees and not be able to do anything about it--we've lost trees because of ice and because of drought...it is heart breaking.

Living in Queensland, Australia, these images are breathtakingly beautiful. But I sit here wondering how you go about daily life in such conditions? How difficult it must be to get anywhere! Despite the challenges of power outages and constant wood cutting and the odd gardening crisis, you just love the snuggly cosiness such weather encourages! Beck x

What I love most about your home is how it always looks like the perfect spot to weather any sort of storm.I am making that soup today! Looks warm and lovely. Hope your power is restored and that the ice has melted.The images are beautifully haunting.pve

You have more snow than your Canadian neighbours, I live in southern Ontario Canada and we have just a dusting of snow. The weather patterns are really strange this year. Stay safe Your photos are beautiful but this kind of weather can be dangerous.

It does look so cozy inside your home. We had a horrendous ice storm our first winter in Kentucky a few years ago. We live on a meadow that is lined with huge pine trees and we could stand out on our screened in porch and hear the loud crack and thud as the heavy tree limbs fell to the ground - so many trees were lost in that storm.

There definitely is an eerie beauty to all the ice coated trees, shrubs and hardscape. Being without power makes life interesting - it looks like you are coping well and there is satisfaction in having on hand what you need to be comfortable during times like this when the power is out and you are hesitant to venture out of your safe nest.

stunning pics..always love your home..have followed you for a year or so and just having returned to 100 degree Adelaide heat in Australia after 5 weeks in the States and a wonderful week in Medford Oregon where we just missed the snow, I realised you are in Oregon....look after those sweet babies and enjoy your beautiful home...

Some way, even though I realize the unrest a ice storm and no power can bring, you seem to exude a calm and make everything possible and okay. . . warm, beautiful, cozy comfortable you make it seem. The iced boxwood photo certainly clarifies what the storm brought. I hope your power outtage is in the past and the tree damage is limited. Loved seeing the fire and candle light at night and then in the new morning light . . .

Looks like a great soup recipe, I think I will make this tonight. I live in Calgary Alberta Canada. We can get the heavy snowfalls here sometimes, it is sad to hear branches snapping. All the snow looks beautiful though.

I've just read your last several posts...Not sure how I missed them....the snow, the first tracks with the babies in the sled and now seeing the fire in your beautiful fireplace....it's making me miss snow....but only the snow and ice storms with the power on! That soup looks very warming.xoannie

I hate it when we loose limbs or trees split because of the heavy snow. We call our house little house on the prairie because we loose power if you sneeze too loud. Know the feeling and we love and appreciate our fireplace because of that. Hang in there! We have well water too so when we loose power we loose water. I hate it.

It's not easy living out in the country and have a winter storm! We live in an old farmhouse too that we're restoring. It needs new windows (new everything really!) and wasn't made with insulation in the walls. Last winter when we had the blizzard my husband got called out to work the storm. We don't have heat in the upstairs, the stove had just broken down, and we'd ran out of firewood. It made for a very cold week for the boys and I! Glad to see your hubby there and that you have firewood to help keep you and the little ones warm!

Glad you are all okay - I grew up in the country (east coast) and we always had freezing rain storms in winter. I remember large trees falling down and covered in icicles, the driveway (sloped) always dangerous to walk on or drive on - I can remember sliding out onto the (luckily desolate) road more than once...Here in the arid prairie we rarely get freezing rain or ice warnings - I don't miss them!! Although they have a savage beauty...Glad you are all well and warm and well-fed too! xo Terri

The thought of living in a farm house is so inspiring, but have always lived in safe suburban neighborhood. Glad you and your family made it through this big storm, now you can get back to decorating. lol

It looks very isolated. But beautiful! I bet the wood cutter wishes you had a slow combustion stove/wood burner and the cook wishes it had a hotplate on top! Can you get them there? Old country farmhouses all over Australia used to have AGAs. I so wanted one in my house and searched, but we have such a short mild winter it would rarely get used.

The memory of the snapping of the trees (it actually sounded like gunfire) from our ice storm three years ago sends chills up my spine... I hope you and Mike and the babies are all toasty now and that in the end you don't have too much damage on your beautiful trees and property....xojoan

I'm in awe of the beautiful pictures you've posted knowing how trying power outages can be. Having gone through 3, lasting over 6 days each, in the past 18 months (you'd think we'd have a generator by now!), I appreciate your post even more. But just the other day I was musing on how fun it was to spend the evenings playing cards with my three boys, listening to a portable radio. There is always a silver lining... Stay safe and warm, Cynthia

Oh my goodness! The first thing I thought of was your hydrangeas. Hope they're okay! And, how kind of you to post a story though you've been in and out of power. Hope all is well, at least it looks warm and cozy!

We had a very similar situation with the power outages here in CT late Oct. last year. We went 10 days without power, it was tough with our little ones and you just get used never get out of the habit of reaching for the light switch! Our only source of heat was our wood stove and we too welcomed the morning light evyer day :)BTW - This soup looks delish! Thanks for the recipe link :)

Hope things are up and running again now. Even in the winterstorms you`re blog is the most beautiful and inspiring to visit. Hope the winter gets a little better for you, and that the winterstorms are over. You do have the most beautiful photos and warm and inviting spaces to share as always:) All the best to you all of you:)

So sorry to hear about the weather! We were hit by a freak hurricane and a snowstorm that both caused us to lose power. Good think we have the woodstove (I cook on it, too!). I just posted a how to make a fire tutorial, you know, in case you ever "forget" how to build one :)

Keeping my fingers crossed you have lovely winter weather from here on out!

How awful, I really feel for you. This happened to us on October 31st/November 1st. Our property and town looked like a war zone. Finally after 30 hrs. we had our power back, my siblings weren't so lucky. They were out between 5 & 7 days. I hope you don't have too much damage.

Snow is lovely til the power goes out! Hope everything is up and running now. At least you are all snug and safe in your cosy home. I've just started following your blog, - you have a beautiful family and home. A truly inspiring place to visit.

wow amazing! just love the look of that snow.its summer over here in australia.we havent had a lot of really hot weather this year so its been great. how do you guys get to work when it snows like that?? wish we could get snow in winter

Oh my goodness, it looks soooo cold. I can't imagine it all.... living in a place that will never see snow. We are the opposite down here... stifling heat and humidity and rain, rain, rain... the wet season.... when everything is damp and sticky and just downright hot. Stay warm up there. Looks so cosy inside your beautiful home. A-M xx

How cozy and welcoming your fireplace (and your home!) are in weather like that. So sad about your trees, though. Always breaks my heart to lose a tree. Now I have to ask about the soup, when you say 'from the freezer' do you mean you had the ingredients frozen or the soup was made previously and frozen. I've been making all kinds of soup this winter, butternut squash, creamy chicken, minestrone and would love to stock up my freezer! Take Care.

I cannot imagine living amongst that snow..do the plants recover?? We are experiencing a heat wave at the moment, we have had 5 days of 39 degrees (Celcius) that equates to about 104 (Farenheit) in your language...

I would love to live in snowy climbs, I do love the cooler weather. I think when we had this happen in the UK it was a wake up call that we needed the help of any electricians in Cambridge to put in a back up supply - we now have a generator which is (fairly safe) and does the job when we need it to. I would definitely give it some thought if you think you will have to endure repeat winters/power loss.